Yelena Välbe

Yelena Valeryevna Välbe (, née Trubitsyna; born 20 April 1968) is a Russian former cross-country skier. She won a record 14 gold medals (5 in relays) at the FIS World Championships, including all five golds in the 1997 edition. She also won three Olympic gold medals (all in relays) and four bronze medals in various Winter Olympic Games as well as four World Cup Crystal Globes.

In 2004, she lost when she ran for president of the Russian Ski Racing Federation. Välbe was later elected President of the Russian Cross-Country Ski Association and has been in that position since 2010, and manager of the Russian National Cross-Country Team since 2012.

She was elected to the FIS Council in 2021. But after she supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a number of European Ski Federations objected to her participation in the 2022 election, and Välbe's nomination was publicly opposed by the representatives of Sweden, Poland, and Finland. As a result, she was removed from the FIS Council after garnering the fewest votes of 23 candidates. In 2022, Välbe supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying that: "we are not at war with Ukraine and no one attacked it."

Career Summary At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, Välbe won fourteen gold (1989: 10 km freestyle, 30 km; 1991: 10 km, 15 km, 4 × 5 km relay; 1993: 15 km, 4 × 5 km relay; 1995: 30 km, 4 × 5 km relay), and three silver medals (1989: 4 × 5 km relay, 1991: 30 km, 1995: 15 km), including all five golds at the 1997 championships in Trondheim (5 km, 5 km + 10 km combined pursuit, 15 km, 30 km, and 4 × 5 km relay). She also won three gold (all in relays) and four bronze medals in various Winter Olympic Games as well as the FIS Cross-Country World Cup five times (1989, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1997). At the 1992 Winter Olympics, she entered in every competition in cross-country skiing and medaled in all of them.

After retirement In 2004, she lost when she ran for president of the Russian Ski Racing Federation. In 2012, she got the position of manager for the Russian Cross-Country Team towards the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. She was also manager for the Russian team during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

Välbe was elected to the FIS Council in 2021, but after she supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a number of European Ski Federations objected to her participation in the 2022 election, and Välbe's nomination was publicly opposed by the representatives of Sweden, Poland, and Finland. As a result, she was removed from the position after garnering the fewest votes of all 23 candidates.

Political career Välbe was a member of the political council of Vladimir Putin's United Russia party in the State Duma from the regional branch, and ran in the 2021 Russian legislative election on the United Russia party list. She won in the United Russia primaries and was leader of United Russia's territorial group No. 29, which included the Vladimir and Ivanovo Oblasts. Having won the elections, she refused to be a deputy, and the Central Election Commission transferred her mandate to Aleksey Govyrin. She eventually withdrew her candidacy.

In 2023, Välbe joined the PutinTeam, whose members supported Vladimir Putin's nomination for the 2024 Russian presidential election.

Views In 2022, Välbe supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying that "we are not at war with Ukraine and no one attacked it."

In January 2023, sports commentator Jan Petter Saltvedt of Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) said that he believes Välbe must now be fired from all sport-related offices going forward. He said: "It is completely reprehensible that a cross-country president makes such statements [supporting the invasion of Ukraine]. Now she is choosing a confrontational line that either shows her internal position is weakened, or she is confident that Russia will be brought back faster than many thought."

In March 2023, Välbe said the following about European politics and the United States.

In November 2023, she said she supported Putin's policies and Russia's war against Ukraine, and was proud that her younger brother had volunteered to fight in the war.

In September 2024, she said "if Russia dropped a bomb in London, Russians would be allowed to attend the Olympics".

Personal life Välbe is estranged from her father, Valery Ivanovich Trubitsyn.

Olympic Games 7 medals – (3 gold, 4 bronze) Year Age 5 km 15 km Pursuit 30 km 4 × 5 km relay 1992 23 Bronze Bronze Bronze Bronze Gold 1994 25 — 6 — 6Gold 1998 29 — 17 — 5 Gold

World Championships 17 medals – (14 gold, 3 silver)

World Cup Season standings Season Age OverallLong DistanceSprint 1987 18 23 1989 20 1990 21 1991 22 1992 23 1993 24 1994 25 1995 26 1996 27 1997 28 1998 29 12 5 18

Individual podiums 45 victories 81 podiums

Team podiums 24 victories – (24 ) 32 podiums – (30 , 2 )

Note: Until the 1999 World Championships and the 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races were included in the World Cup scoring system.

In popular culture White Snow – a biographical sports drama film about Välbe.